The North East Has Plenty to Be Positive About—Here's Why

It’s safe to say that there
has been plenty of turbulence in the UK recently, largely brought about by the
word that has taken control and shaped news agendas since 2016.

This uncertainty hasn’t
helped breed confidence across the business spectrum, at a time when positivity
seems hard to come by.

According to the latest
indicator by the CBI, private-sector activity is at its lowest since 2013, with
the business lobby group expecting activity to weaken further.

While national growth
forecasts and predictions by commentators may appear bleak and not make for
particularly good reading, there is plenty to be positive about in the North
East.

For decades, the region has
been plagued by and widely perceived as an economic blackspot - albeit from
those looking from the outside in and not those from the region who are
involved in private sector business.

But what these people, who
don’t actually know the region, fail to realise is that we are home to many
thriving and fast-growing businesses that aren’t letting the ‘scaremongering’
impact on their strategies and planned investments.

A recent study by the
Entrepreneurs’ Forum, in collaboration with Public Knowledge, revealed that
while economic confidence was broadly down among the North East business community,
entrepreneurs were still confident about their own enterprises.

The 2019 Entrepreneurs’
Forum Business Tracker Survey showed that 54% of entrepreneurs are more
confident about their businesses than they were 12 months ago, with 46% more
optimistic than three months ago.

However, the two main
barriers to growth were identified as finding quality staff (31%) and economic
uncertainty (21%). Added to this, 58% of respondents were less confident in the
economy now than they were a year ago.

From the findings, it is
clear that, among Entrepreneurs’ Forum members, there is plenty to still be
positive about and this optimism should be used as an indicator that things
aren’t as bad as they are portrayed in the mainstream media.

The fact is, the region was
ranked number one in the UK for business growth by the Department for Digital,
Culture, Media and Sport, with organisations contributing £3.1bn to the
regional economy - representing a 48.9% increase since 2010.

There was also a recent article
featuring three firms from the North East that were named among the
fastest-growing companies in Europe, according to the Financial Times. It was
pleasing to see Entrepreneurs’ Forum member Hedgehog Lab among the trio, which
joined END Clothing and Cussins as the region’s representatives in the FT1000 –
a list that ranks European firms by their growth between 2014 and 2017.

The Ward Hadaway Fastest 50
is another strong indicator and metric that should be championed too, as these
lists and indices show the calibre of companies and strong brands that have a
presence in the North East.

Regardless of how the
economic and political uncertainty plays out, agile entrepreneurs will be the
ones that make the most of the opportunities they’re presented with. Entrepreneurial
businesses are the key drivers for the economy as they are the companies that
are contributing to the exchequer and, even more crucially, creating the jobs
required for the future prosperity of the North East.

The Business Tracker
research reinforces the indomitable spirit of entrepreneurs and highlights the
significant role that owner-managed businesses will have to play in securing
economic prosperity for the UK.

This crucial issue requires
as much attention, if not more, than the overall playing down of the economy
that we have all become accustomed to.